Poly(ɛ-caprolactone) composites reinforced by biodegradable poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate) fiber

Biodegradable and biosourced poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate) (PHBV) fiber was used as a reinforcing agent, and environment friendly poly(ɛ-caprolactone) (PCL) composites were prepared by melt compounding. The mechanical properties, rheological properties, and enzymatic degradation of the PCL composites were investigated in detail. With the addition of PHBV fibers, the PCL composites showed increased tensile yielding strength and modulus. Especially, the storage modulus from the results of dynamic mechanical analysis was increased significantly, suggesting that PCL was obviously reinforced by adding PHBV fibers. With increasing the PHBV fiber content, the complex viscosity and modulus of PCL increased, especially at low frequencies, indicating that a network structure was formed in the composites. The network structure resulted in evident solid-like response due to the restriction of the chain mobility of PCL matrix, which was further confirmed by the Han and Cole-Cole plots. The morphology, evaluated by scanning electron microscopy, indicated PCL and PHBV fiber were not highly incompatible and the interfacial adhesion was good, which was beneficial to the reinforcement effect. The biodegradability of the PCL was significantly promoted after composites preparation. Such studies are of great interest in the development of environment friendly composites from biodegradable polymers.